Universal value

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A

moral values
.

The claim for universal values can be understood in two different ways. First, it could be that something has a universal value when everybody finds it valuable. This was Isaiah Berlin's understanding of the term. According to Berlin, "...universal values....are values that a great many human beings in the vast majority of places and situations, at almost all times, do in fact hold in common, whether consciously and explicitly or as expressed in their behaviour..."[1] Second, something could have universal value when all people have reason to believe it has value. Amartya Sen interprets the term in this way, pointing out that when Mahatma Gandhi argued that non-violence is a universal value, he was arguing that all people have reason to value non-violence, not that all people currently value non-violence.[2] Many different things have been claimed to be of universal value, for example, fertility,[3] pleasure,[4] and democracy.[5] The issue of whether anything is of universal value, and, if so, what that thing or those things are, is relevant to psychology, political science, and philosophy, among other fields.

Perspectives from various disciplines

Philosophy

Philosophical
study of universal value addresses questions such as the meaningfulness of universal value or whether universal values exist.

Sociology

Sociological
study of universal value addresses how such values are formed in a society.

Psychology and the search for universal values

See also:
Theory of Basic Human Values and Moral foundations theory

power, achievement, hedonism, stimulation, self-direction, universalism, benevolence, tradition, conformity, and security
. Below are each of the value types, with the specific related values alongside:

Schwartz also tested an eleventh possible universal value, 'spirituality', or 'the goal of finding meaning in life', but found that it does not seem to be recognised in all cultures.[8]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Jahanbegloo 1991, p. 37
  2. ^ Sen 1999, p. 12
  3. ^ Bolin & Whelehan 1999
  4. ^ Mason 2006
  5. ^ Sen 1999
  6. ^ Schwartz & Bilsky 1987, p. 550
  7. ^ Schwartz 1994
  8. ^ Schwartz 1992

References

  • Bolin, Anne, and Patricia Whelehan (1999). Perspectives on Human Sexuality. SUNY Press.
  • Diamond, Larry Jay, and Marc F. Plattner (2001). The Global Divergence of Democracies. Johns Hopkins University Press.
  • Jahanbegloo, Ramin, (1991). Conversations With Isaiah Berlin. McArthur & Co. Reprinted 2007, Halban Publishers.
    ISBN 978-1-905559-03-9
  • Mason, Elinor, (2006). 'Value pluralism'. In The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. (Accessed 13 Nov 2007).
  • Pettit, Philip (1996). The Common Mind: An Essay on Psychology, Society, and Politics. New York: Oxford University Press.
  • Schwartz, S. H. (1992). 'Universals in the Content and Structure of Values: Theory and Empirical Tests in 20 Countries'. In M. Zanna (ed.), Advances in Experimental Social Psychology (Vol. 25). New York: Academic Press: 1-65.
  • Schwartz, S. H. (1994). 'Are there Universal Aspects in the Structure and Contents of Human Values?'. Journal of Social Issues, 50 (4): 19–45.
  • Schwartz, S. H. and W. Bilsky (1987). 'Toward a Universal Psychological Structure of Human Values'. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 53: 550-562.
  • Sen, Amartya (1999). 'Democracy as a Universal Value'. Journal of Democracy, 10 (3): 3-17.

External links

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